[chajin]

the government just lost a fifth of the state’s inventory

It would seem to me to be many more fifths, a few thousand or so.

To misquote an old proverb, in socialism you line up for the booze, while in capitalism the booze lines up for you.

[dfwgator]

One of the reasons Khrushchev was removed, was there was a shortage of vodka. That’s a no-no in Russia.